Big Money: Microsoft-Nokia And 5 Other Mulit-Billion Tech Buyouts

Last September 3, the whole tech world went wild because of four words: Microsoft will buy Nokia. How much, you ask? Well, $7.17 billionlang naman. Whoa! Makes the P10 billion Pork Barrel scam look like peanuts now, doesn't it? Now try converting that to pesos...

The amount is staggering, but is justified to say the least. We're talking about one of the biggest companies in the world gobbling up the former number one smartphone maker—and one that produced iconic handsets—here. The acquisition actually comes in two parts. First, the Big M will buy Nokia's devices and services business which makes up the bulk of the company's smartphone-making capacity for $5 billion. Then another $2.17 billion will be spent to acquire Nokia's mountain-sized heap of licenses and mapping assets, bringing us to the crazy-high grand total.

Reminds us of DBZ's Goku and his walang bukas chow-down

However, the move isn't really that surprising with many online pundits saying this was expected. You see, two years ago, Microsoft hooked up with Nokia and became the latter's partner in its smartphone biz. The result? Lumias boasting Windows Phone 7 and 8 goodness, adding a third prominent player in the mobile OS war that was quickly becoming a snorefest with Apple and Google (Android) having no legit competitors.